Musical Instruments

Engel, Carl, 1818-1882Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 196K words
Chapters: 20

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Musical Instruments by Carl EngelAuthor: Engel, Carl, 1818-1882,Language: English, Class: ML: Music: Literature of music, Release Date: Apr 11, 2017

Editor's review

Carl Engel's Musical Instruments is a nineteenth-century organological work; this public-domain English edition preserves the original discussion of instrument classification, construction, and historical change. It focuses not on performance technique but on knowledge of instruments through form, materials, and regional transmission, reflecting a distinctly period academic perspective. For today's readers its value lies in offering a documentary sample of early instrument research, best read alongside modern instrument guides to observe how classification concepts and terminology have evolved. The book is information-dense and suited to slow, note-taking reading by those interested in music history, material culture, or museology, but it is not an introductory performance manual or a current authoritative reference.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in instrument history and the material culture of music
Musicology students seeking a nineteenth-century documentary sample of instrument research
Natural-history enthusiasts who enjoy understanding instruments through classification and form
Readers with some English reading ability willing to take comparative notes

Not a good fit for

Beginners hoping to learn instrument performance methods or techniques
Practical readers seeking contemporary acoustic data and authoritative conclusions
Readers who prefer light introductory books and avoid academic description

Reading tips

Read the table of contents first to grasp the classification framework, then select chapters on instruments you know for comparison.
Keep a modern instrument guide or encyclopedia at hand to check terminology and differences in form as you read.
Excerpt key classification passages and note where nineteenth-century views differ from today's consensus.
Read the English original chapter by chapter; for archaic terms, infer from context first, then verify.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book suitable for learning to play an instrument?

No. The book focuses on instrument classification, construction, and historical origins; it is not a performance tutorial and contains no exercises or technique guidance. Those seeking to learn performance should choose a dedicated instrument method; this book is better as background reading and documentary reference.

Do nineteenth-century works on instruments still have reading value today?

They have documentary and perspective value. They record early classification approaches and concerns in instrument research, helping readers understand the discipline's evolution; however, specific conclusions and terminology may have been updated, so read alongside modern organological sources rather than treating it as current authority.

What should I note when reading the public-domain e-book edition?

This is a free public-domain e-book, typically without a modern introduction or notes; some archaic spellings or terms may require independent verification. Use reliable reference works or encyclopedias alongside it, and distinguish the original period views from contemporary research conclusions.

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About the author

Engel, Carl, 1818-1882 Author

Carl Engel (1818–1882) was a nineteenth-century writer on music and a student of musical instruments. Public information about his life is limited: the exact dates of his birth and death and his nationality are not recorded in the available holdings. Three works are confirmed, namely the first and second volumes of Musical Myths and Facts and Musical Instruments. Judging from these titles, his interests centred on musical history and organology. The two volumes of Musical Myths and Facts juxtapose widely circulated anecdotes and legends with verifiable facts, combining the breadth of a note-taker with the caution of a researcher, and are suited to general readers and music lovers; Musical Instruments turns to the instruments themselves, describing their construction, capabilities and historical development. These books have long served as accessible English-language references on musical lore and instrumental knowledge.